A Different Point of View
by jesphoenix05
Summary: A an alternate world of wizards and sparkling vampires. Buffy, Harry and Cedric discover that friendship is magic!


**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of the franchises here used. JK Rowling, Joss Whedon and Stephanie Meyer are the ones who make all the money. Definitely not me…sad…so sad…

Timeline Note: Takes place during the events just after the maze (as described in the book) towards the end of Goblet of Fire for Harry and Cedric. The graveyard follows the events of the book rather than the movie because it is actually longer in the book and serves my purpose better. For Buffy, it takes place at the end of the first season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer during the summer of her first year in Sunnydale. This is an alternate universe story so you will encounter many changes from the original story lines.

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**Twilight for a wizard**

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Buffy walked quietly thru the graveyard of a small British country town squeezing tight the wooden stake in her hand. The name of the town was Little Hangleton. With great effort she resisted the urge to grind her teeth and complain out loud. Her mom had landed a dream assignment at an art exhibit in London for the summer break. The two of them had a chance to do some awesome sightseeing and mother/daughter bonding but she should've known it was all just too good to be true.

'Damn Watchers!' Buffy thought angrily as she stalked through the graveyard looking for bloodsuckers. Giles had shown up a week into their trip at the museum where her mother was working. In his charming British accent he explained to her mother that he was visiting relatives.

'Yea right! Relatives my foot!' thought Buffy bitterly. He had talked her mother into taking Buffy to see the sights in the countryside. He invited her to come along as well but the watchers had her mother covered. The exhibit was such a busy affair that there was no way her mother could come along. So here she was now patrolling a moldy old graveyard instead of shopping and sightseeing like a normal teenage tourist.

According to Giles there is an evil force gathering strength again in Europe. The watchers have become concerned with the possible return of a warlock that had once almost destabilized the world and brought about another world war. His advance was halted though Giles refused to tell Buffy how – in fact he refused to talk much about the guy at all! It was as if the mere mention of the warlock could conjure up Armageddon! In the end she was so angry with this whole field trip anyway that she just didn't care. She wanted to find whatever it was that was murdering people with magic in this village, slay it then go back to London and _try_ to have a normal summer!

She felt the familiar clench of her stomach and knew the vampires were near. She sighed in exasperation; she could only see one vampire ahead in the gloom but those guys never worked alone. They loved to travel in packs and they loved trying to sneak up behind her. She rolled her eyes as a vampire finally steps out from behind a large tombstone. He smiled evilly showing off his fangs.

"Why it's the Slayer! Fancy meeting you here all the way from across the pond! A long way to come just to die!" taunted the vampire. Again Buffy rolled her eyes and not bothering with a verbal reply she proceeded to – with great satisfaction! – kick his butt…

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Exhausted and beat up but by no means broken Harry Potter hobbled his way towards the Tri-Wizard cup with help from fellow Hogwarts student Cedric Diggory. They argued for a moment on which of them should take the prize. Cedric gallantly refused as Harry had just saved his life. But Harry, not wanting to cut Cedric out of the victory he believed they both deserved, thought they should share it. He suggested they both touch the cup together and that way the trophy would – indisputably – go to Hogwarts and they could split the prize.

"Ok together then," said Harry. They both touched the cup together and Cedric instantly felt the tug of the portkey magic that should send them back to the beginning of the maze and their hero's welcome. However, as the spiraling magic dumped them out at their destination the lack of noise immediately let them know they had not arrived where they should have. Cedric looked around as did Harry. He spotted a girl in the distance walking over a hill a short distance away and noticed two men drop down from a tree and sneak their way towards her.

"Wait here! I'll be right back!" called Cedric to Harry. Harry called to him to come back. He said they were in danger and needed to leave immediately. But Cedric couldn't just abandon the girl. Harry's actions in the labyrinth had energized his chivalrous spirit. He couldn't leave a girl to be attacked in a graveyard while she was visiting a dead relative without trying to help. He figured Harry would be alright for a few minutes without him.

He ran up a hill and past old tombstones swiftly, casting an enhanced senses charm on himself so he could see better in the dark. He followed the two men that slithered in the darkness towards the girl. Somewhere in the back of his mind he wondered why a young girl would be wandering alone so late at night in a cemetery – especially one as old as this one seemed to be.

He finally caught up to the men and he stared astonished at the scene before him. Among the tombstones lit by a dying street lantern and the bright full moon was a short very pretty blond about the same age as him. Her hair was pulled up in a high ponytail and she was dressed in very form fitting, fashionable muggle clothing.

The part that surprised him wasn't how young and attractive the girl was but what she was doing. She was fighting the men! Her feet and fists whirled with speed and power that seemed impossible for any person to have, let alone a seemingly ordinary muggle! She stabbed one of the men with a wooden stake and the guy exploded into dust. Cedric realized finally what it was that he was seeing and why this girl was here.

'She must be the legendary Slayer!' thought Cedric with a jolt of excitement as the girl disintegrated another of her attackers. The Slayer hadn't been seen in Europe since World War II. Very few wizards had actually been able to meet a Slayer. They lived rather short lives and a new one was awakened every 20 years or less. With such a large wizard community in Europe the Slayer hardly ever popped up in Europe anymore. Most demons, vampires and other dark creatures migrate away from wherever wizards gather.

The Slayer stabbed in the chest the one she had been punching and it turned to dust. Cedric burst forward then and fired a spell at the last vampire getting up behind the Slayer. A huge ball of bright light hit the last vampire and it disappeared into a puff of dust.

"Cool!" exclaimed the Slayer as she dusted herself off. Cedric smiled astonished, despite the whirlwind of motion that the girl had been a few seconds ago, she hardly looked winded and there wasn't a hair out of place! He was suddenly acutely aware of how bedraggled he must look.

"Thanks for the assist! My name's Buffy!" she announced giving him a flirty smile as she held out her hand to him. He figured then he must not look too bad as he shook her surprisingly soft hand.

"My pleasure… My name is Cedric and it's an honor to meet the legendary Slayer," he replied smoothly flashing his best smile at her as he shook her hand. She smiled obviously pleased by how he'd referred to her. The Slayer was often an anonymous entity, a truly unsung hero. She did her work rarely being seen or heard by either muggles or wizards. He had studied about the Slayer at school with special interest because he found her mission to be so full of tragic beauty. He had secretly wished he'd come across her someday and had planned to go searching for her when he graduated from Hogwarts.

"I take it your some kind of sorcerer?" she asked cheerfully. She was flirting with him now and her sparkling eyes had made him forget for the moment Harry's plight…and his girlfriend Cho.

"Yes! A wizard to be specific," he replied with a flirty smirk on his face.

"Really? I always thought wizards were like, you know, really old guys with really long beards and funny hats!" she teased cheerfully. Cedric laughed, Buffy was not the solemn tragic figure he had studied about in Hogwarts!

"Oh then you won't be disappointed when I introduce you to Professor Dumbledore!" he countered flashing his best smile again.

"I look forward to it!" she replied smiling up at him, her sparkling eyes and cheerful smile inviting him to make a move.

"So are you from around here?" she finally asked. He smiled and a suave reply almost made it to his lips when he finally remembered his injured classmate! The fear on his face suddenly made Buffy's smile instantly disappear.

"Actually no, my classmate and I are lost and he's hurt!" Cedric explained in a rush feeling – and sounding – guilty for having forgotten Harry. But despite Buffy's reversal to her Slayer-mode he still had not remembered Cho.

"Well, why didn't you say so! We better go find him before more bloodsuckers show up!" Buffy suggested all business now as she picked up on Cedric's urgent tone. Cedric led the way back and as he did he explained quickly about Hogwarts, the Tri-Wizard competition and the circumstances that had landed him and Harry there. Buffy let him know that they were in the town of Little Hangleton.

"Doesn't sound familiar…we must be really far from Hogwarts," replied Cedric mystified wondering aloud why the cup had brought them here. He had wondered when he first arrived if it was some kind of tie-breaker test but that didn't seem likely now after talking to Buffy. Further speculation was halted as a new group of vampires blocked their path back to Harry.

"The dark lord is busy right now! Sorry love, but you're gonna have to die," the leader announced in a thick cockney accent flashing his fangs at her for emphasis. Buffy rolled her eyes obviously unfazed by the vampire's threat or the larger number of blood suckers crowding around them. Cedric gritted his teeth and did his level best to look as brave as Buffy did. He opened his mouth to retort but was cut off by a pain-filled scream.

"Harry!" he whispered urgently. Fearing for Harry Potter's life now as it dawned on him why they were here instead of back at the beginning of the maze. All the things that had happened in the maze had been meant to weaken and push Harry towards the cup and eliminate all his competition.

'So he could be brought here to be tortured and murdered by Death Eaters!' he concluded remembering what had happened during the Quidditch World Cup. Of course, the Death Eaters had probably not counted on the Slayer being here though!

It was obvious to Cedric from her accent that she was not British so she must've made a trip out from America to find out what was really stirring in Europe. The watchers were supposed to be very mindful of current events in the magical world. He wondered if she had come to investigate the incident at the World Cup; or if she was asked by the Ministry to come and help deal with the increase in the vampire population in Britain. In the end it hardly mattered why she was here. Her presence gave him and Harry an advantage.

"Sounds like the boy who _lived_ won't _live_ much longer!" mocked the lead vampire. Buffy replied by stabbing him in the chest with her wooden stake and turning him to dust.

"Who's next?" she challenged angrily and without waiting for an answer attacked the next vampire. Cedric was awed once more by her raw physical power and the magic that seemed to radiate from her as she turned into Buffy the Slayer.

"Hold on Harry! Help is on the way!" Cedric called out as he did his best to keep up with Buffy and the vampires.

"No Cedric! Get out of here!" yelled Harry back with a chocked sob. Cedric clenched his jaw and pushed on. He was not as fast and strong as Buffy and the challenges of the maze had taken a toll on him but he was determined not to leave Harry behind. On top of that the vampires they were fighting were not the pathetic parasites he had studied about in school. They were much stronger and more alert. They were resistant to some lower level paralyzing spells and the enthralling charms that were supposed to make vampires subservient to wizards just bounced off of them. He gave up on them fairly quickly.

He adopted instead Buffy's more brutal but amazingly effective methods. He cast protection and endurance charms on himself and Buffy; and conjured wooden stakes and sunlight simulating charms. But the vampire hoard seemed unrelenting! For every one vamp they took out two more took its place. He spotted the Tri-wizard cup and thought perhaps the original spell to send them to the beginning of the maze was still on the cup. With his enhanced senses he could still see magic glowing on the cup. He quickly formulated a plan.

"Buffy we need to regroup!" Cedric called to her. Buffy looked towards him and instantly realized from his tone and his face that he had a plan.

"Yea! Fall Back!" she called back to him. She back flipped over the vampire behind her turning him to dust as she landed. They ran back the way they had come. Cedric realized as he hurried after Buffy that the vampires did not chase after them. This worried Cedric more than anything. They ducked behind a tombstone and Cedric quickly explained his plan.

"We can divide their forces and get to Harry easier I think, and then we can all touch the cup. I can summon it to us with magic. It'll transport us back to Hogwarts. We'll be safe there," Cedric explained. Buffy nodded but she offered to distract the vampires instead while he snuck up around the vampires and got to Harry.

"I can catch up with you guys easily enough once you have him," Buffy put in saying that she could handle the vampires on her own just fine. "Before we go though, who the hell is this Dark Lord the vamps are so hell bent in protecting!" she added a little irritated.

"He's the most evil wizard in the world and before you ask me we do not say his name…_ever_!" Cedric replied grimly. Quickly he explained to Buffy Harry's story: He had survived when as a baby He-who-must-not-be-named went to murder his wizard parents. The dark wizard killed his parents but when he tried to kill Harry _he_ was destroyed instead. No one knew exactly how it had happened or why. Now Buffy began to understand why Giles had been reluctant to say much about the mission.

"I bet his parents sacrificed themselves and used some kind of powerful ancient magic to save their baby…it's what I would've done," Buffy replied softly, moved by Harry's tale. Cedric turned to her surprised. He had not thought about that but now that she said it perhaps Harry's parents had found some kind of magic that could counter the dark lord. Harry's parents were reputed to have been the strongest wizards of their generation.

"I don't know but maybe your right. Maybe that's why Harry survived and that's why He-who-must-not-be-named wanted to kill his parents," he explained that most people believed the dark wizard to be dead but Harry and Prof. Dumbledore did not believe it. Now considering all the evidence he believed Harry's version of things. If they got out of this in one piece he vowed to help Harry in any way he could from now on.

"My guess is that he's going to sacrifice Harry to restore his powers," Cedric surmised. Buffy agreed, she knew from her Slayer's experience that big magic like that required a big sacrifice and said as much to Cedric.

"Ok then let's get going!" Buffy announced all business once more. She ran back towards the vampire hoard giving Cedric barely enough time to cast an endurance charm on her to boost her power before she ran off. More screams and some whimpers were coming from the direction Harry was in but this time it wasn't Harry screaming. Cedric shuddered to think that maybe the dark lord had rounded up more victims. But as he listened he realized the scream and moans were coming from someone that was helping the evil wizard so Cedric wasted no more time in pitying the owner of the pained voice.

'Hold on Harry,' he prayed softly as he cast a disillusion charm on himself and slithered away hoping his absence would be unnoticed. He made his way unobstructed as Buffy commanded the complete attention of the vampire hoard. He reached a clearing between tombs were Harry was tied. From an enormous black cauldron a figure climbed out. Cedric's blood ran cold and he was frozen in his hiding place.

'It's him!' he thought in near panic as he realized who the figure with the snake-like appearance and red eyes was. His legs suddenly felt like lead and he shivered in his spot listening to what was happening.

"Ah the Slayer!" hissed the dark lord and Cedric closed his eyes trying to control the urge to bolt away from this awful place.

"Yeah that's right! And don't you worry baldy I'm coming to kick your ass too! You sick freak!" Buffy yelled back at him full of bravado. Harry called out to her to get away and save herself. This finally infused him with enough courage to continue his mission. He was not leaving without Harry and his new friend Buffy! It was an impressive display of courage for a Hufflepuff youth who had been taught since birth to fear even the name of Voldemort.

However fatigue from his trials in the maze, his battles with the vampires and fear of Voldemort had taken a heavy toll on Cedric. He never saw the two vampires slithering quietly towards him…

Voldemort paid the Slayer no more attention. Harry wondered who the girl was and why she could battle vampires like that. It reminded him of the kung-fu movies Dudley liked to watch. He figured Hermione would know, though the term "Slayer" seemed pretty self explanatory just watching her demolish the vampires. He promised himself if he got out of this alive that he would ask her anyway and listen attentively to everything she said. He wondered also where Cedric had gone.

'He's old enough to apparate so maybe he went back to Hogwarts to get help!' thought Harry. A brilliant bubble of hope blossomed in Harry's heart. He prayed that any second now Professor Dumbledore would materialize…

Buffy fought her way through wave after wave of vampires. She half-listened to the newly hatched villain as he monologued to his cronies. He called the self-sacrifice of Harry's mother "cheap magic" that his "supreme intellect" should have foreseen and that pissed off Buffy like nothing else.

'I swear I'm gonna ram a stake so far up his ass it'll impale his slimy excuse for a heart!' she promised herself angrily. She fought with renewed vigor as the snake-faced villain tortured Harry with some kind of pain giving spell. Cedric was close to Harry now and she needed the bad guys to watch her. But as she watched Harry writhe and scream on the ground she knew she couldn't waste any more time with the vampires. With a running jump she leapt onto the top of a statue and used the added height to vault over the vampires. She landed next to Harry with cat-like grace. She picked him up and put him down behind the tombstone he had been bound to.

"My name is Buffy! I'm a friend of Cedric's and I'm gonna get you out of here Harry!" she announced her voice full of confidence. The fear and exhaustion on the little boy's face fueled her rage. She figured he couldn't be more than 13 by how small and skinny he was. The hope in his eyes as he looked up at her banished the fatigue she was starting to feel. She would make sure this kid survived if it was the last thing she did! She stepped out then and took her fighting stance stake in hand. Voldemort laughed.

"_You_ would challenge _me_?" he taunted laughing. The large snake that circled around his feet stopped to hiss at her for a moment before continuing its circuit around its master. Buffy ignored it for the time being. She figured she would slay it after she dealt with its master.

"Laugh it up baldy! But I've taken down bigger and badder than you!" she countered full of the boldness she was infamous for among the Watchers. He turned to his followers.

"Such a nuisance," said Voldemort with a disdain that rankled Buffy. His followers laughed nervously.

"I'll show you nuisance!" Buffy growled angrily but before she could attack he pointed a thin wand at her.

"Avada Kedavra," Voldemort said with a casual flick of his wrist. He smirked with satisfaction as the green blast of magic shot out of his wand straight for Buffy. His smirk vanished when the ancient and powerful magic that created and protected the Slayer allowed her to do something no victim of Voldemort had ever done. She dodged…

Harry watched amazed as Buffy fearlessly squared off against Voldemort. He watched her leap effortlessly out of the way of his killing curse with absolute awe. He heard then Cedric call to him softly from the left and Harry turned. Hope bubbled to the surface again. He looked around to see if see Cedric had brought anyone else with him from Hogwarts. He still thought Cedric had apparated to get help but a young man and a woman leapt out from behind Cedric and grabbed him before Cedric could reach him.

"Watch out!" Harry cried out too late. A piercing scream made him look back toward the girl that had tried to save him. Hope came crashing down for Harry as three death eaters converged on the Slayer at the outraged shouts of Voldemort. The dark wizard was ordering them to hold her but not kill her so he could study more carefully later the magic that created her. He had not thought the Slayer could be useful to him… until now!

For now Voldemort wanted to concentrate on torturing and then killing Harry. It looked like they were using the Cruciatus curse on her by the way that she screamed and her body twisted. He was on the border of tears when Voldemort started yelling at him to come out, accusing him of being a coward. Things suddenly looked bleak for him and his would-be rescuers. He realized now that no one else was coming for them.

Harry realized that Buffy had been distracting Voldemort's forces so Cedric could come to rescue him. He looked at Cedric and even though he was pinned he was still fighting. He looked at Buffy and despite the pain inflicted on her by the torture curse she managed to throw it off long enough to kick a death eater and break a knee, an arm, a wand or whatever she could reach before another death eater could continue the assault on her. Neither one of them was giving up. So he made up his mind, if this was going to be his last stand he would be worthy of being Lily and James Potter's son! He stepped out with his wand held up in salute to duel…

Cedric struggled to free his wand arm from the powerful grip of the vampire holding him. They laughed as he struggled. Several more were coming towards the two vamps holding him but he managed to slip his hand free for a moment to fire off spells killing two and making the others retreat. Buffy finally went down under the combined assault of the death eaters. But though they tortured her with a forbidden curse she still managed to continue the fight.

'I have to get to Harry!' he thought. Harry had now come out of his hiding place after being taunted by He-who-must-not-be-named and – to Cedric's surprise – prepared himself to duel him.

'Harry is a Gryffindor through and through,' thought Cedric still struggling to free himself of the vampires. But Cedric knew that despite his bravery Harry was not going to last long against the dark wizard. Desperately, he racked his brain for some way out of this predicament. Their only hope really was in reaching the cup but he needed some kind of distraction. Before he could think of anything one of the vampires sunk her teeth into his neck, the other into his arm. Terror lanced through him as the vampire's poison began seeping into him and his blood slipped away.

Even if the vampire didn't drain him, there was no cure for being a vampire… there was no hope for him now. The vampire dropped him suddenly blinded and in pain as Harry and Voldemort's duel had erupted into a brilliant light show. All the vampires hissed in pain and anger as they shrunk away from the light of Harry and the evil wizard's duel. Cedric hardly noticed as his body screamed in pain trying to fight the curse of the vampire but he managed to fire one last spell: a protection shield for Buffy. She was Harry's only hope now…

Buffy felt the pain suddenly stop. A really large evil wizard – that looked to Buffy more like a common thug really than a wizard – had her by the neck as he tortured her with his magic. But once she felt the evil magic end he crumbled like paper under her Slayer's strength. Harry's magic duel with the Dark Lord had conjured up some kind of spirit guardians to help him. She couldn't really tell what they were saying to him as she was busy right now breaking the faces of the guys that had been torturing her.

"Time to go!" called Harry. Buffy didn't reply she kicked another black robed wizard in the face. She shoved her wooden stake in her pocket as she sprinted towards Harry. Grabbing him by the waist she lifted him slightly off the ground and ran towards where Cedric was on the ground screaming in pain.

"Harry, the cup…it's a portkey," Cedric managed as the two reached him. Harry immediately turned and pointed his wand to where the Tri-wizard cup was lying.

"Accio cup!" Harry called out. Remembering what Cedric had said about the cup, Buffy grabbed hold of Cedric's hand tight hoping that – as the cup zoomed towards Harry's hand – her holding onto both boys would be enough to get them all away from this awful place. She felt a strange tug at her stomach and suddenly she was swirling through a strange void at an almost breakneck speed. She held on tight to Cedric and Harry.

She heard Cedric scream one more time and they were suddenly dropped onto a grassy field with a muffled thud. There was suddenly music and cheers all around them that sounded vulgar and out of place to Buffy. Harry was calling out Cedric's name as she released them both. Buffy sat up looking around confused; there were people all around them. They seemed to have landed in the middle of some kind of stadium. The music stopped suddenly and a woman screamed in terror somewhere but Buffy had dismissed the crowd. Her eyes were centered on Cedric.

"Damn it!" she cursed between gritted teeth. Cedric's skin was pale, his eyes were closed, his chest no longer rose and fell with his breathing and she could no longer make out the sound of his heart. A man suddenly threw himself on Cedric and wept bitterly screaming his name. Buffy guessed by the things he was screaming that the guy was Cedric's father. Tears fell silently down her cheeks.

'Why did it have to end like this?' she asked herself as she wept softly. A short chunky old man in a bowler hat began buzzing around saying "The body needs to be moved! There's too many people!" It seemed to Buffy like he was embarrassed to have Cedric die in his stadium. Every time he said it her anger rose higher and higher until finally she snapped. She sprang up and grabbed two fistfuls of the guy's coat and lifted him off the ground.

"HIS NAME IS CEDRIC AND THAT'S HIS SON! NOT SOME RANDOM PIECE OF MEAT YOU JERK!" she shouted at him then tossed him so hard he went flying to the other side of the stadium. It was lucky there were plenty of wizards around because one of them caught him with a spell and slowed his landing considerably.

"How did you get into the maze?" snarled someone from behind her. She whirled angrily to meet the owner of the voice. Her muscles still screamed in pain from the torturing magic that had been inflicted on her but her lightning reflexes were reignited instantly by anger and she quickly pulled her stake out of her pocket. The man confronting her wore a billowing black robe, had pale white skin and long black greasy looking hair. He looked like one of the cheesy vampires in old black and white movies. She held her battle stance and glared at the man now pointing his wand at her.

"Peace Severus…I'm sure she means no harm," said an old man that put himself between her and the black robed vampire-looking guy now identified as Severus. Buffy relaxed her stance a little thinking the name seemed extremely appropriate for the severe-looking man. The man put down his wand slowly but glared at her suspiciously. Buffy glared back defiantly for a moment, put her stake away, and then turned to the old man that had stopped her as he began to talk to her.

"Are you the Slayer?" asked the old man gently. She nodded tiredly feeling her body relax out of its battle tension as she looked into his kindly face. He had sad old eyes and a crooked nose with half-moon glasses resting on it. She smiled sadly as she took in his appearance remembering a flirty comment she had made to Cedric about wizards. It suddenly felt like a lifetime ago as she rubbed at the aching muscles in her arms. The old man was wearing a long sparkling light blue robe, a funny shaped matching hat with a blue tassel hanging on it and had a very long white beard.

"Are you Professor Dumbledore?" she asked. Somehow the fact that he seemed to fit into her mental image of an all-knowing wizard made it seem normal that he would know who or rather what she was. He gave her a sad smile as he nodded.

"You're well informed Ms…" he let the statement hang there so she could insert her name.

"Buffy…Buffy Summers and I'm from Sunnydale, California," she said extending her hand guessing his next question. The crowd was standing stone still and mostly silent except for a few weeping girls here and there. Cedric's grieving parents were already moving away with Cedric's body.

Professor Dumbledore introduced the other man as Professor Severus Snape. Buffy thought from the sneer on the guy's face that he was aptly named. He introduced the lady standing behind him as Professor McGonagall and for some reason Buffy felt as though she was looking at an older version of Mary Poppins. It made her feel instantly comfortable with her.

'His sneer is worse than Principal Snyder's!' thought Buffy between amused and horrified of Professor Snape.

"To answer your question Professor Snape I wasn't in your stupid maze! I found Cedric in a cemetery while I was patrolling," she added now in a snippy tone, Professor Snape's sneer flipping on her rebellious side.

"He said they were lost and asked for my help," she continued "right Harry? …Harry?" she called out and looked around for young Harry but he was gone. The professors suddenly looked horrified.

"Where's Harry?" she asked, her Slayer senses already on full alert again. Professor Dumbledore only said "Come!" and took off with Buffy, Snape and Professor McGonagall at his heels. He moved fast for an old man but Buffy felt impatient suddenly. Everything Cedric had told her in the cemetery came back to her in a rush giving her a horrifying conclusion to draw. In order for Harry and Cedric to end up miles away from their school, in the jaws of a deadly trap, there had to be a traitor in their school.

They rushed away from the stadium and she barely registered the silence among the students suddenly becoming a buzz of whispers as the two professors and Buffy rushed away. She paused for only a fraction of a second to gawk at the impressive castle that was the school's main building. She hurried after the professors and as they entered the school she paused again to marvel for a second at the staircases.

They were moving!

Not just up or down like your average, ordinary mall escalator. They were switching back and forth and even up and down between hallway entrances. Twisting and turning in an apparently random fashion. They all stopped and Professor Dumbledore spoke urgently to one of the paintings who – to Buffy's utter amazement – immediately replied telling the professor which direction the paintings had seen Harry and the traitor go. Buffy shook her head so she could focus. She would ask questions later. Right now, she only wanted to find Harry!

"Ms. Summers! Harry is in the office above the Defense against the Dark Arts classroom. The paintings will guide you! Go!" he instructed her urgently. Buffy nodded and decided to ignore the fact that a talking painting was telling her which staircase to go to first. The painting of a young girl in a Victorian style dress hopped from picture to picture with her. She was a painting of a Slayer that had lived more than 100 years ago and had attended Hogwarts.

She was aware of Buffy's abilities and able to guide her better. She told Buffy which staircases she could vault over and which short cuts to take. It suited the now very impatient Buffy just fine. Professor Dumbledore had urged her to run ahead of them and that was exactly what she did. She hardly paused when she reached the classroom door and found it locked. She kicked it open and ran between the desks towards the staircase.

"Good Luck Slayer!" called out the young girl as they reached the last painting inside the classroom. She took the steps two at a time to reach the heavy oak door that was the entrance to the office. She rattled that door handle but quickly realized it was locked too. So she took a couple of steps back and brought it crashing down with a mighty kick. She spotted a creepy guy with a weird glass eye cornering Harry.

"Get away from him!" she yelled at the traitor as she kicked the wand out of his hand. She had already learned that wizards were powerless against her without their wands. Once she disarmed him he went down fairly easily with a quick kick to the chest. She planted herself between Harry and the wizard who landed flat on his back. Clutching at his chest he groped for his wand but the professors arrived then. Buffy was not surprised that they were able to catch up with her so quickly… they were wizards after all! Red sparks flew from Professor Dumbledore's wand and the traitor was immediately unconscious.

"You ok Harry?" she asked not taking her eyes off the creep that had been threatening her new friend even though the guy was knocked out. The professors tied him to a chair and after Professor Dumbledore gave a few instructions to Professor McGonagall and Professor Snape he asked Harry to take a seat. He wanted Harry to hear the whole tale. He reasoned that knowing the truth would help Harry come to terms with all that happened to him tonight. Professor Snape argued Buffy was an outsider and should not be here when they interrogate the traitor.

"I'm not leaving Harry!" she declared defiantly. Cedric had died trying to save him! She wasn't about to leave him now until she was sure he would be safe. Harry's hand wrapped around her arm.

"Please Professor Dumbledore…let her stay," he said softly fear and exhaustion plain to hear in his voice. The professor held up his hand to stall any more protests from Professor Snape.

"Ms. Summers, today you and Harry became comrades in arms on the same battlefield you deserve to hear the same answers as Mr. Potter," Dumbledore began solemnly. Professor McGonagall nodded in solemn agreement with Professor Dumbledore. He turned to Snape.

"Ms. Summers has proven herself a friend to our school and to Harry and Cedric. She will stay," he declared. Snape didn't look very happy about it but he nodded and hurried away with Professor McGonagall to follow Professor Dumbledore's instructions. He made two stools appear out of nowhere and asked her and Harry to sit and wait for the teachers to return. Tiredly Buffy did as she was told. She patted Harry's hand, he had not released her but Buffy did not mind.

"It's ok Harry…you're gonna be ok now. I won't let anyone hurt you anymore," she assured him putting as much confidence and strength into her voice as she could muster but her body ached still from the tortures and her mind reeled from the crazy things she'd seen today. He leaned against her.

"Thank you," he said softly. They both sat in stunned silence leaning against each other to wait for the other two professors to return…

* * *

-0-

* * *

Professor Pomona Sprout was the only one to notice the small holes on Cedric's neck and arm heal as he lay there in the stadium. Quickly she conjured a sheet to cover Cedric along with the stretcher to carry him out in. The presence of the Slayer meant very likely that those holes were where her student had been bitten by a vampire. However, when a wizard was bitten it wasn't always clear what kind of vampire they would become. His father followed her and between the two of them they carried him to her office. Cedric's mother joined them; she was in shock. She followed them in silent disbelief tears flowing unchecked down her face.

"Mr. and Mrs. Diggory…I know this will be hard to take but I believe Cedric was…" she began very solemnly but never got to finish her statement. Cedric awoke then groaning in pain.

"I feel like I'm on fire! What's happening to me?" he groaned in pain. Professor Sprout pointed her wand at Cedric unsure whether she could just destroy her student. When a wizard was bitten by a vampire there was a chance they could retain their souls and activate a rare effect known as the Pixie's Gift. She knew that Cedric was related to fairies from his mother's side. Wizards descended from the unions of wizards and ancient fairies possessed the ability to combat powerful curses like the vampire curse…but only to a certain extent.

"Where am I? Are Harry and Buffy safe?" he asked still groaning in pain. She wrestled with indecision. If Cedric's last spell had been with a selfless intent then he had retained his soul and become a Crystal Vampire or vampixies as was the more common slang among wizards. Called thus by the magical community because when exposed to sunlight, instead of vanishing in a puff of smoke and dust, they glittered as if covered in tiny glass shards. Suddenly Cedric's mother snapped out of her shock and placed herself between Professor Sprout's wand and her son. She leveled her own wand against the professor.

"No! There is still a chance!" she shouted at them. Obviously she didn't care what her son was as long as he was alive. Mr. Diggory wept softly but she noticed now that he had pulled out his wand too. Vampires of all kinds were considered enemies by the ministry and Crystal vampires were considered most dangerous of all. They were extremely emotional, prone to fits of destructive depression and often times manipulative and too greedy for their own good.

Despite all that though, crystal vampires were generally well behaved…as behaved as any vampire could possibly be at any rate! They endeavored to stay out of notice of the muggles and even had their own government (known as the Volturri) who were quick to enforce their few laws whenever necessary. So the wizard governments generally left them alone and wizards everywhere went out of their way to make sure no vampixie ever possessed knowledge of the existence of the wizard community. There had been some very rare cases in which the vampire had been spared and his or her memory modified.

But… because they were in the end vampires, they were closely watched!

"My last spell was Protego. I cast that spell on Buffy so she could save Harry," said Cedric as though he had heard the thoughts pounding in her head. He sat up slowly; it seems the spasms of pain from the final stages of transformation had stopped now.

"Go ahead professor…cast your sunlight charm please," he added solemnly with a reassurance to his mother that everything was going to be alright. Sure enough, as Professor Sprout cast the sunlight spell his skin glittered like shattered glass in the light. They breathed a sigh of relief…

"I don't want to hurt anyone. I won't feed on humans," Cedric declared defiantly though the hunger inside him was starting to build into an intense fire. His father and Professor Sprout quickly moved to cover the windows and seal the door. His mother sat next to him and patted his hand proudly assuring him that they would do whatever they could to help him. They gathered around Cedric as slowly he began to tell the tale of the events in the maze first. He talked about how the cup had been a portkey and that it transported them to a town called Little Hangleton. He spoke of how he met Buffy in the cemetery.

"My son…the knight in shining armor off to rescue a damsel in distress," said Mr. Diggory said with something between a sob and a chuckle. Cedric smiled sadly at him. He talked about the hoards of vampires in the cemetery and about the Dark Lord rising out of the cauldron. He told them how Buffy had confronted the evil wizard and dodged the forbidden killing spell.

He talked about how horrifying it had been to hear the evil wizard's voice and admitted that it had frozen him to his spot. He recalled the boldness of Buffy confronting He-who-must-not-be-named and that it had infused him with courage and strength to continue. He talked how she bravely fought off the Death Eaters despite their use of the torture spell on her and how Harry – though badly injured and exhausted not to mention severely outclassed – had stepped out of his hiding to confront You-Know-Who. He came to the part where the vampires had ambushed him.

"I tried to fight them off but they had me pinned…once they bit me I knew there wasn't much I could do… I had to try and save Harry and Buffy," Cedric finally concluded. His mother put her arm around him.

"I'm so proud of you my son," she said softly with a proud smile on her face. Professor Sprout nodded in agreement as a tear escaped her eyes. It was a most incredible tale of bravery and selflessness. The students had performed above and beyond. Cedric could sense her pride and her eagerness to have Professor Dumbledore hear his tale. He realized with shock that one of the new abilities that came with his vampire curse was the ability to hear other people's thoughts.

"He's back then…just like Dumbledore always said he would be," said Amos Diggory softly awed by the magnitude of his son's harrowing adventure. With his new ability Cedric heard more than just his father's words. He heard Professor Sprout's doubts on the ministry and her absolute faith in their headmaster. He heard his mother formulating plans to get him out of the country. He could hear her absolute determination to not allow anyone in the ministry to even touch him! He could hear everything they wanted to say as clearly as if they had shouted it.

"Yes dad…and we have to help Harry! There are a lot of Death Eaters that have very high influence in the ministry. Some even work in the ministry! I saw them! We can't abandon Harry!" Cedric declared passionately insisting that he would not allow Harry to be abandoned by the wizarding world. He sensed from his father's thoughts that this was exactly what would happen. His father – who worked in the ministry – was certain that the wizards would rather pretend Harry and Professor Dumbledore were crazy than admit that their greatest fear had crawled out the grave.

"Fudge will never believe it," Mr. Diggory said softly and Cedric could feel the revulsion in his father of Fudge and his prejudice towards anything not considered pureblood wizard. He also sensed his father's fears. Cedric was a vampire now, even though he had seen everything and remembered clearly the names and faces of the death eaters that had been unmasked, no one would believe him and they might even try to destroy him.

"Professor Dumbledore will know what to do! Don't despair Cedric! We will find a way to win this fight! He didn't beat us then and he won't beat us now!" declared Professor Sprout. And her mind was full of practical thoughts. First was finding a suitable meal replacement since Cedric was refusing human blood.

She immediately thought of extracting the sap from the large man-eating plants she had in her greenhouse. He heard her thinking how the sap would be very similar to blood since the plants were fed raw meat and sometimes they fed on the small rodents that crept into the greenhouse. She left to carry out her plan switching to thoughts on how to hide Cedric from the ministry and how to sneak him out of the castle. He smiled and sat with his parents to wait for Professor Dumbledore to come…

A long time passed and as Cedric was finishing his third cup of man-eater plant sap, a short knock on the door finally signaled Professor Dumbledore's arrival. Cedric sensed the professor outside the door and the sadness surrounding his thoughts but was not surprised when his ability was suddenly blocked. The professor was a powerful wizard after all! Professor Dumbledore walked quietly into the office and smiled sadly at Cedric. He spoke directly to Cedric first.

"I see Mr. Diggory that you have managed to retain your soul and become a crystal vampire, is that correct?" he asked before anyone could say anything to him. Cedric's eyes went wide with surprise and he wondered for a moment if professor Dumbledore could hear people's thoughts too.

"Harry and Buffy were kind enough to share the tale of your terrible ordeal in the cemetery," the professor added solemnly. Cedric listened carefully as the professor explained how a death eater, who had been impersonating Professor Moody all year, had engineered Harry's kidnapping starting by forcing him to enter the Tri-Wizard tournament. The death eater had used the Imperius Curse to control his fellow competitor Viktor Krum in the maze so he would attack Cedric and the Beauxbaton student Fleur Delacour to keep the two of them from reaching the cup before Harry.

"Ms. Summers described how the torture curse suddenly ended and since Harry was keeping Lord Voldemort busy, I assumed that the shield spell she still had on her when she arrived was most likely cast by you," he added calmly. Cedric nodded and explained that he could not think of any other way to save Harry.

"I'll bet Harry feels guilty. He saved me from the spider…I couldn't take the prize after that even though I got there first," Cedric said. Harry had been the one to suggest they touch the cup together and share the prize.

"I need to tell him it's not his fault," Cedric declared. Dumbledore gave him the saddest look then.

"Cedric," he began softly "for Harry and Buffy's safety – as well as your own – no one can know that you are alive," Professor Dumbledore then explained how the Minister had the death eater sentenced to receive the kiss of a dementor without questioning him. He declared that the ministry would be issuing a general order that _all_ vampires are to be destroyed on sight. After that Fudge proceeded to call Harry an attention needy brat and a liar and that Dumbledore was a power-hungry crazy old man. The large heavy goblet that Cedric had been drinking man-eater plant sap from suddenly crumbled like a piece of paper in his hands as he swore.

"Dirty, rotten, no good… _pig_!" Cedric growled angrily "He can't do this! I can't allow this!" he ranted as he got up and started to pace smashing the goblet into a tiny ball. Professor Dumbledore explained that Buffy had called Fudge _that_ and many other things but – for the sake of decorum – he would refrain from repeating any of the things she said.

"Nor will I explain the creative use for her wooden stake that she proposed to try out on Cornelius!" he finished with a twinkle of amusement in his eyes. Cedric laughed.

"She isn't _at all_ what they say a Slayer is supposed to be like," Cedric commented amused. He had always been taught that the Slayer was a very solemn and disciplined girl who attracts very little attention to herself. Buffy seemed very dedicated to her slayer duties but she struck him as the flashy type of girl with a strong rebel streak in her.

"Indeed! Her uniqueness has made her the most successful Slayer in centuries!" Professor Dumbledore pointed out equally amused for a moment. He added that her unorthodox methods had led her to defeat a very powerful vampire lord known only as "the Master" who had slain most of her predecessors.

"She will have her own difficulties to deal with however and her help will be limited," added Professor Dumbledore solemn once more. He explained that the town Buffy resided in was home to something called "The Hell Mouth": a phenomenon that allowed every kind of demonic creature to crawl out and prey on humans.

"I have to help Harry somehow! I saw _him_…I saw all those people kissing the hem of his robe…all the horrible things they plan to do! Professor please…" Cedric insisted but Professor Dumbledore held up a hand to stop him.

"I will help you Professor!" declared Amos Diggory standing up from his seat and speaking for the first since Professor Dumbledore arrived. "Those of us in the ministry will be walking a fine line because of Fudge but whatever I can do I will do!" he declared proudly.

"Excuse me! Helping Harry and defeating You-know-who is all very well and good but we have a more pressing matter!" interrupted Mrs. Diggory giving each person in the room an annoyed glare. "Cedric is a wanted criminal now in the eyes of the ministry for no other reason than that he's a vampire! He needs help _now_!" she concluded sounding a bit irritated.

"Indeed Mrs. Diggory and for that purpose I have brought this," Professor Dumbledore agreed pulling out of his robes a silver hourglass with almost translucent sand inside. It was encased in a glass globe that had the outlines of the continents and islands on a world map etched in silver on it. Two switches stuck out - one on the North Pole and one on the south.

"A little device of my own creation. I invented it after I met a group of crystal vampires who do not feed on humans," he explained admiring the little device. He added that you could indicate the location you wanted to go to but the device was a one-time use and would take him and Cedric to a specific place and time then return the professor to his point of origin.

"How does this help me Professor?" Cedric asked wishing he could hear the professor's thoughts.

"The one thing you and Harry need most is time…" began professor Dumbledore.

"So I can go back in time…to stop You-know-who before he rises to power?" Cedric put in uncertain. Attempting to make changes in the timeline could have disastrous consequences. One small mistake could cause a major paradox.

"No Cedric…you know well the dangers in tampering with history," he began solemnly. Cedric nodded in agreement and the professor continued.

"Voldemort will be amassing an army and honing his powers. With this device you can retreat to safety away from the ministry and Voldemort, gather allies and hone your new skills," he explained.

For that purpose he proposed that he take Cedric and travel to North America. The wizarding community there was more spread apart. In fact most wizards concentrated in either New York or Los Angeles and worked very hard to blend in completely with the muggle community, most going as far as having ordinary muggle jobs. He further explained that modern American wizards took great pride in being able to do anything without magic. They used it mostly for self defense.

"With the exception of the occasional Hollywood celebrity that will cast a spell or two to make their rise to fame a little easier," he noted with amusement. He turned solemn once more as he turned to look at the Diggorys. They understood now that Dumbledore would take Cedric far into the past to some unknown place where he would learn to live as a vampire and wait for the time when it was safe for him to return.

Professor Sprout and Professor Dumbledore stepped out of the office to allow the Diggorys to say good bye in private. In solemn silence they waited for a few minutes until Cedric finally emerged. Dumbledore could hear Mr. and Mrs. Diggory weeping softly from inside the office sitting side by side wrapped in each other's arms. For a moment Cedric could feel the professor's sadness. Professor Sprout shook hands with him.

"We'll come find you when the time is right!" she promised fiercely. Cedric smiled sadly wondering how long it would be before he would see his parents and his home in St. Ottery Catchpole.

"Hold on to my arm Cedric," Professor Dumbledore said softly. Cedric did as he was told he looked back at his parents who smiled at him through their tears. They waved at him and he waved back as a swirl of light enveloped him…

Prof. Sprout waited until the headmaster and Cedric were gone. She realized as the professor explained about time travel that Cedric was never coming back. Once the professor returned, he would modify all their memories to keep Voldemort and his supporters away from the Diggory family. They would be in great danger if anyone ever found out that Cedric didn't die. Vampire or not Cedric was yet one more witness to Voldemort's return.

"Professor…Dumbledore is not going to let us keep the knowledge that my son is still alive, is he?" asked Mrs. Diggory guessing what exactly she had been thinking. Prof. Sprout shook he head.

"No, and I don't think he means for Cedric ever to return either," she began softly. Mrs. Diggory began to cry again and Mr. Diggory held her tight trying to comfort her though he himself seemed just as inconsolable.

"But I have a plan!" she added determinedly. It would be a dangerous plan but it could be done.

"What do you propose?" asked Amos intrigued. She smirked slightly and conjured 3 small vials. Wordlessly she touched the tip of her wand to her forehead and pulled out the little silver string. Mr. and Mrs. Diggory caught on pretty quick and pulled out the silvery tendril of memory from their minds too and quickly stuffed it in the little vial. She wrote a small note and attached it to her vial. She wrote today's date on it and the words: "Open in One Year". Quickly Mr. and Mrs. Diggory did the same on their vials.

"As an extra measure of security you should keep our memories too Pomona. They'll be safer here at Hogwarts," he suggested handing her his vial. Mrs. Diggory stared at hers reluctant to let the last piece of her son go. In the end she handed it over and wept bitterly once more.

Professor Sprout moved quickly to her secret compartment where she kept only the most precious of her seeds and hid the three vials. She had just finished closing it and putting up the enchantments that would keep anyone but the Herbology professor out when a swirl of silver light appeared once more in her office signaling the headmaster's return. She hurried back to her desk to wait for the professor to fully materialize…

Cedric felt the familiar tug of portkey magic but it seemed more intense and disorienting than regular portkeys. He landed with a thud in a dark alley late at night. He picked himself up quickly, missing deeply the loss of his magic for the first time since he was turned.

'I doubt it'll be the last time,' he thought deeply saddened as he followed Professor Dumbledore into a very busy looking muggle hospital. He had left his wand in his mother's hands because he found out right away he would never be able to use it again. Yes, there were some perks to being a vampire. The ability to hear thoughts was actually very cool but his new abilities were mostly useless against a fully trained wizard.

The Professor stopped headed to the nurse's desk. She gave him an odd look when she took in their appearance. The professor pulled out his wand and as he began to speak a dreamy look came over the nurse's face. He recognized the signs of a memory charm right away. Once again he missed being able to use magic.

"Oh that's right…you're Dr. Cullen's grandfather…of course! Right this way!" she replied cheerfully. She directed them to Dr. Cullen's office. The office was empty the young nurse let them know Dr. Cullen would be along soon.

"Welcome to Chicago Mr. Diggory! The year is 1918," Professor Dumbledore began as he looked around the office. Cedric paced nervously waiting as Professor Dumbledore explained that once when he was young he had met a group of crystal vampires calling themselves the Cullen family.

"I met a young man named Edward among them," he continued explaining he had struck up a brief friendship with him. He had used a spell that made him seem like a crystal vampire so he could befriend them more easily. They were a close knit very loving group and in his time with them Dumbledore had gotten to know Edward the most out of all the Cullens.

"It was interesting to me that he seemed to know little things about Hogwarts and often drew the crest of Hufflepuff House on his journals…yet he told me he didn't know where he'd seen the crest and that he had come from an American family named Masen," he added. He explained that the Cullens did not believe in wizards or magic and they believed their condition was some sort of genetic mutation. He stopped as a blonde, good-looking man walked in the office. He gave professor Dumbledore a suspicious look but then when he glanced at Cedric he was startled.

"Good Evening Dr. Cullen," Professor Dumbledore began solemnly "No doubt you are wondering how you suddenly have a grandfather when _he_ died 300 years or so ago,"

"Yes," replied Dr. Cullen but he stared at Cedric. As the professor introduced himself and Cedric, explained about wizards and tried to explain to the doctor why he needed his help; Cedric heard, felt and saw all of Dr. Cullen's troubled thoughts. Among his many patients were a small family called the Masens. The father had died of the Spanish influenza already; he had succumbed fairly quickly to the disease. The mother and son still lingered but there was nothing Dr. Cullen could do.

They would both die soon. Mrs. Masen had asked Dr. Cullen to save her son Edward – who had an almost identical physical resemblance to Cedric – by any means necessary, but the only thing he could do at this point would be to turn him into a vampire. Something the good doctor could not bring himself to do yet his conscience did not allow him to ignore the woman's dying request. He was struggling with the morality of cursing Edward into a lonely immortality or let him die and be reunited with his mother whom the young man loved very much.

"Dr. Cullen I know that you're a good person," he began solemnly interrupting Professor Dumbledore's speech. Dr. Cullen watched him and said nothing. He could feel the doctor's loneliness. He had lived for many centuries and part of him wanted to turn Edward just so he wouldn't be alone any more.

"And I know that you don't want to inflict this terribly difficult and lonely life on anyone! If I were Edward I would rather die than be cursed to live forever craving the blood of my friends and loved ones," he continued in earnest now. Professor Dumbledore watched Cedric with sadness but he nodded to encourage him to continue.

"I'm already cursed! I need your help! I'm alone! Let Edward join his parents! Let me take his place!" he concluded his voice heavy with emotion. The fact that he was magic-less, thousands of miles and almost a hundred years away from home had finally hit Cedric and filled him with a sense of deepest dread. There was one more realization that hit him at that moment. Professor Dumbledore would have to modify his memory to prevent him from trying to intervene in the events that are to come and vampires weren't allowed to have knowledge of the magical communities any way.

"There is one more person who must weigh in," Professor Dumbledore intoned solemnly. Cedric agreed. Edward should at least be given a choice. The professor cast an illusion spell on Cedric to make him look different and not arouse suspicion from the hospital staff. Dr. Cullen stared in amazement and his mouth opened to ask the million questions he was dying to ask. Professor Dumbledore held up a hand to stop him.

"All in good time doctor," the professor added solemnly. Dr. Cullen nodded and led them out of the office towards Edward's hospital room. Once there the doctor closed the door and pulled down the blinds. Cedric approached Edward carefully absorbing the chaotic thoughts running through Edward's mind. From what he made of them he seemed to be reminiscing about his life. Edward seemed to have a lot of love for his mother but none for his father.

"Edward…my name is Cedric. I need to ask you something," he began softly. Edward opened his eyes and stared in fascination at Cedric. It was hard to follow at first his disjointed thoughts. His disease was very advanced but once Cedric explained that he was a vampire and wanted to offer Edward a transformation as a means of escaping death Edward's thoughts became very clear.

'STAY AWAY FROM ME DEMON! YOU'LL NOT HAVE MY SOUL!' his thoughts screamed at Cedric. His breath rattled in his chest then suddenly he stopped breathing. Dr. Cullen was immediately at his side. He was about to start trying to revive him when Cedric stopped him.

"No Dr. Cullen…that's Edward's answer," he announced solemnly. Professor Dumbledore stepped forward then and with a slight wave of his wand transformed Edward's hospital gown to match Cedric's Hogwarts Tri-wizard champion uniform. He smiled sadly at Cedric and he knew that the boy understood as he lifted his wand towards the two vampires. Dr. Cullen began to ask what was happening when the professor said softly: _Obliviate_.

Quickly the professor lifted Edward off the bed and placed Cedric on it changing his uniform into a replica of Edward's robes. He looked one last time at Cedric hoping that after the war against Voldemort he might find a way to make Cedric and his new family a part of the wizard world again.

"Goodbye Cedric…" he said as a swirl of light took him – and Edward's body – back to his own time…

* * *

Morning had come to Hogwarts after a night that had felt interminable to Dumbledore. He destroyed the time travel device as soon as he returned last night. Modifying the memories of Pomona and the Diggorys had been a most difficult thing to do. Still, it had been necessary to keep them safe. He toyed with the idea of approaching the Volturri to see how willing they would be to help them in the battles ahead.

His mind was too exhausted right now to think too much on this. Voldemort had finally made his most colossal mistake in using Harry's blood to restore his body and he intended to make the most of it. He would speak to the students at the end of year feast about Cedric's "death". Hopefully, it would become a rallying cry for his students and other wizards to unite and fight against Voldemort. It was in the end the only way Cedric could help now.

'Goodbye for now Cedric,' thought Dumbledore as he watched the sunrise…


End file.
